Apparatus for wax treating paper disks and the like



Feb. 24, 1942. c w, oopwm AL 2,274,610

APPARATUS FOR WAX TREATING PAPER DISKS AND THE LIKE Filed May 1, 1940 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTORS Feb. z4, ,1942.

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APPARATUS FOR WAX TREATING PAPER DISKS AND THE LIKE Filed May '1, 1940 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 c. w. GOODWIN ET AL ,274,610

Feb. 24, 1942.

APPARATUS FOR WAX TREATING PAPER DISKS AND THE} LIKE Filed May 1, 1940 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Feb. 24, 1942. c. w. GOODWIN arm. 2,274,610

APPARATUS FOR WAX TREATING PAPER DISKS AND THE LIKE 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed May 1, 1940- in? g5: 51: X

INVENTOR5 L'arl/Vfzanwm Bwzfams Feb. 24, 1942. c. w. soonwm ETAL 2,274,610

APPARATUS FOR WAX TREATING PAPER DISKS AND THE LIKE Filed Mayl, 1940 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVNTORs Patented Feb. 24, 19 42 arrsnarus ron wax TREATING PAPER I nrsxs AND rm: turn cm W. Goodwin, Plainfield, N. 1.. and James E. Engel, Tottenvilie, N. Y., minors to American Seal-Kan Corporation of Delaware, Wilmington, Del., a corporation of Delaware Application May 1, i940, Serial No. 332,644

This invention relates to the art of wax impregnating paper disks and the like and ha for an object to provide a novel and improved appa-' 1 ratus for the above purpose.

The present invention is particularly adapted for the treatment of paper disk for milk bottles and provides a method and apparatu's'for impregnating said disks with wax under conditions such that a comparatively rigid, water-resistant disk obtained. It has been found that disks s of th i above type tend to absorb water, principally through their edges, and that unless special precautions are taken the edges of the disks may become soft during use, with a consequent loss in holdin power.

Thezti sent invention for wa 3 the wax i absorbed into the fibers of the disk through the sides and also from the raw edges provides an apparatus thereof. In one embodiment ofthe invention the molten wax which is to be applied thereto and then spraying the wax onto the edges of the disk in a spraying zone, after which the disk are passed through a heated impregnating zone wherein they are maintained hot a sufiicient length of time to permit the wax to become absorbed into the fibers.

The mechanism accordingly provides a con-' veyor means for feeding the disks in vertical edgewise position successively through a preheating zone, a waxing zone and an impregnating zone. Means is provided for supplying a current of hot air to the disks in the preheating and impregnating zones for the purpose above indicated. In the waxing zone the disks ar passed through a spray of liquid wax while they are slowly rotated by means of a screw conveyor so that the wax contacts the edge portions of the disk as well as the side faces thereof. 7 Means is provided for adjusting the angle of the wax spray so as to obtain the most efiicient operation. In the impregnating zone the disks remain heated until substantially the entire surface film of wax is absorbed therein. They may then be stacked s)the disks under conditions such that 1 Claim. (01. ill-55) cific embodiment has been set forth for purposes of illustration.

In the drawings:

Fig. l is a top plan view of awaxin machine embodying the present invention with parts broken away toshow the construction thereof.

Fig. 2 is a side elevation partly in section showing the construction of the machine;

Fig. 3 is a detail view of the drive mechanism for the screw conveyors:

Fig. 4 is a section taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is an .enlarged section taken on the line 5-5 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 6 is an enlarged section taken on the line 6-8 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 7 is a section taken on the line 1-1 of Fig.

Fig.8 is a section taken on the line 88 of Fig. 2; and

Fig. 9 is a section taken on the line 9-9 of without danger of the disks subsequently sticking In the following description and in the claim certain specific terms are used for convenience in referring to various details of the invention. These terms,- however, are to be given as broad an interpr etation as the state of the art will permit.

,Referring to the drawings more in detail, the invention is shown as applied to a machine comprising a frame Ill, Fig. 2, carrying bed plates II and I2 forming the bottoms of a preheatin chamber 13 and an impregnating chamber it respectively, and carrying a wax reservoir l5, Bearing brackets l6 and I1 are secured to the frame III at opposite ends of the machine to support the screw conveyors 20, to be described.

The wax reservoir 15 is provided with suitable heat insulation 2| and contains a heating mechanism, shown as a steam coil, by which the wax i maintained in liquid condition. A pump 23, op-

erated by a motor 24, removes liquid wax from the reservoir I5 through a supply pipe 25 and feeds the same through a pipe 26 to a spray manifold .21 by means of which the wax is supplied to a plurality of nozzles 28. A 'wax return pipe 29 is connected to the pipe 26 and may be controlled speed of the screw conveyors 20.

For supplying heated air to the preheating chamber I3 and to the impregnating chamber I4, 9. fan 40 is provided (Fig. 8) which receives air through an axial port H and supplies the same through a duct 42 to branch ducts 43 and 44, Fig. 2, leading to hoods 45 and 46 respectively which are located over the preheating and impregnatlng chambers. The hoods 45 and 46 may be provided with perforated plates 41 and 48 through which the air is supplied to the above mentioned chambers. The plates 41 and 48 control the heat and the flow of air to the respective chambers. -The perforations may direct the air onto the disks. Suitable heating means shown as electrical heating rods 50. (Figs. 1, 8 and 9), are located in the duct 42 in a position to heat the air as it passes therethrough. The duct 42 may be formed with enlarged apertures SI which provide clearance to prevent electrical contact between the rods 50 and the walls of the duct. It is to be understood, however, that other heating means may be employed if desired. Inclined plates 53 and 54 are provided in the preheating chamber I3 and the impregnating chamber I4 for the purpose of directing theheated air, and any wax which may be present in said chambers, into the wax reservoir I5.

For feeding the disks, a plurality of screw conveyors 20 are provided. These conveyors are arranged in groups of three as shown in Figs. 7 and 8, each group comprising a lower conveyor 20a and a pair of side conveyors 20b which are arranged to receive a disk 60, Fig. 5, therebetween so as to support and feed the disk in an upright position. The conveyors 20 are mounted in bearing brackets I6 and I1 and are provided at their ends with gear wheels 6|, Figs. 3 and 4, meshing with spiral gears 62 carried on a drive shaft 63, which is driven by suitable means, such as an electric motor not shown.

The disks are fed to the conveyor by a belt 64 passing around an idler pulley 65 and discharging the disks 60 between guide plates it and 51 which are arranged to'cause the disks to fall edgewise onto the various screw conveyors and to be picked up and fed in this vertical edgewise position, as shown in Fig. 5. After treatment the disks are fed by the conveyor to receivers 68 in which they are stacked as shown in Fig. 6.

In the operation of this device, the wax is maintained at the desired temperature in the reservoir I by means of the steam coil 22 and is continuously sprayed through the nozzles 28 by means of the pump 23. The temperature in the preheating chamber I3 and in the impregnating chamber I4 is controlled by means of the heater rods 50 and by varying the speed of the operation of the blower 40. The length of treatment of the disks is also controlled by means of the In normal operation the disks remain in the preheating zone I3 a suiiicient length of time so that they are raised in temperature to at least the temperature of the liquid wax which is to be sprayed thereon. As the disks pass through the spraying zone, they receive a coating of liquid wax which extends over the sides and edges thereof. The disks are rotated by the screw conveyors as they pass through this spraying zone so that all of the edge portions of the disk are subjected to the action of the spray.

The disks now pass to the impregnating zone I4 wherein they are maintained at'a temperature above the melting point of the wax a suificient length of time to permit the wax to be absorbed into the fibres of the disk. Preferably the conditions are so controlled that when the disks emerge from the impregnating zone the surface film of wax has practically disappeared by absorption into the fibres. The disks are then stacked in the receivers 68 and maybe stored for a further period of time to allow the same to cool. During the cooling of the disks any further traces of external wax are removed by absorption, so that when cool the tendency to adhere together is practically eliminated. The disks are accordingly in suitable condition to be supplied to a capping machine by means of the usual feed mechanism which is adaped to remove the disks successivelyirom the stack and apply the same to a bottle.

It will be noted that the above described mechanism provides for the uniform treatment of the edges of the disk under conditions such that the wax is absorbed into the exposed fibres of the raw edge as well as through the sides of the disk. In this way a maximum amount oi wax is obtained at the edges where the tendency to absorb water is the greatest. It has been found that the above described operations result in a high water resistivity with the use of a minimum amount of wax. It is also to be noted that the waste is practically eliminated as all of the wax which drains from the disks and is not absorbed into the fibres flows back into the wax reservoir. Furthermore, the preheating of the disks prevents the wax from solidifying when it comes in contact with the cold disk and thereby depositing an insulating film over the surface thereof. In this way a maximum amount of impregnation is obtained during the travel of the disks through the machine.

Although a specific embodiment of the invention has been shown for purposes of illustration, it is to be understood that the invention is capable of various uses and that changes and modifications may be made therein as will readily appear to a person skilled in the art. The in-v vention is only to be limited in accordance with the following claim.

What is claimed is:

A device for wax treating paper disks or the like, comprising a casing forming a single elongated chamber having connecting central and end sections, screw conveyor means to advance a series of said disks in spaced, vertical edgewise position through said chamber and to continuously rotate said disk during said passage, a wax reservoir below said central section and open thereto, heating means in said reservoir to maintain the wax therein in liquid condition, a set of spray nozzles over said open reservoir, extending along the path of movement of said disks in said central section and positioned to direct a spray of liquid wax against said disks as they pass therethrough, the excess spray falling back directly into said reservoir, hoods over said end sections and means supplying heated air through said heads downwardly onto the disks in said sections for heating the same and for assisting in the retiu'n fiow of the wax drippings along said sloping bottom members to said reservoir.

CARL W. GOODWIN. JAMES E. ENGEL. 

